Amid face mask shortage, SC man and his 3D printer are stepping up. How you can help
The rapid spread of the coronavirus around the country has left many health care workers scrambling to get the protective equipment they need. Many hospitals are turning to any source that might be able to help, even if they are an unusual supplier.
Philip Prescott is a bit of an unusual supplier. The Columbia native’s day job is in software development, not the health care industry. But when he saw the need for more protective equipment, he decided the industrial-scale laser printer he bought for his hobby could help.
Prescott has 3D printed other items for fun, and does the occasional custom fabrication as a side job out of his Greenville home. But when some other “makers” pitched in to help with the coronavirus response, he shifted his machine to producing the thin plastic face shields that can reduce the spread of the virus.
“A normal 3D printer might take one to three hours to print one (component),” Prescott said. “I can make 10 (plastic shields) in a couple minutes with the laser.”
With a network of other printers crowdsourcing the headpieces for the face shields, Prescott is stepping up to fill the needs of the health care system wherever they can. In under two weeks, he estimates the group has produced 2,000 face shields to distribute as needed across the country.
They’ve set up the website 3DforCOVID.com both to take requests for needed equipment and coordinate the response between 3D printers around the country.
Five hundred masks produced by 3D for COVID were dropped off Monday at the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose, Calif. The hospital sits in one of the worst hit parts of the Bay Area, said Michael Elliott with the Valley Medical Center Foundation.
“It’s not just doctors and nurses. It’s the people who clean the rooms who need these,” Elliott said. “You’ve seen images out of New York of people wearing garbage bags, and I don’t want to see my friends and colleagues here in that situation.”
The plastic face shields, which Prescott describes as similar to what you might have seen your dentist wearing at some point, are designed to be cleanable and reusable. Medical personnel would normally discard single-use items to prevent them coming into contact with multiple patients, but the shortage of supplies right now makes reusables more necessary.
Prescott said the group is in talks with first responders in South Carolina as well. He plans to drop some off to a local EMS crew this week, and said he’s contacted the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control about providing masks to the state agency if needed.
The Recraft Creative Reuse Center, a Greenville non-profit, is helping 3D for COVID find the materials they need through contacts with manufacturers who can provide plastic cast off as scrap.
“They have a great idea, because those are in very high demand right now,” said Recraft Executive Director Grant Cothran. “We are a bridge between people and the material... we get donations from businesses across the Upstate.”
The reuse center is helping in a different way too. As a 501(c)3, it can collect tax-free donations on the project’s behalf.
The next step for the group is getting corporate sponsorship, which would allow 3D for COVID to acquire large-scale injector molds. Prescott says those could boost their production by “a factor of 100.”
“We all have friends or family who are in the medical industry, and we see how scary it is,” Prescott said. “People are in need, and we have the capacity to help. Who knows how long this is gong to last? I can make a difference now.”
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREWhat you should know about the coronavirus
The coronavirus is spreading in the United States. Officials are urging people to take precautions to avoid getting sick, and to avoid spreading the disease if they do contract it.
Click the drop-down icon on this card for more on the virus and what you should do to keep yourself and those around you healthy.
What is coronavirus?
Coronavirus is an infection of the respiratory system similar to the flu. Coronaviruses are a class of viruses that regularly cause illnesses among adults and children, but this outbreak has spawned a new disease called COVID-19, a particularly harsh respiratory condition that can lead to death.
Health officials believe COVID-19 spread from animals to humans somewhere in China. It spreads among humans by physical person-to-person contact, including via coughs. That’s why health officials urge sick individuals to avoid contact with other people.
For more information, visit the website for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
What are the symptoms?
Symptoms are similar to the flu and include fever, coughing and shortness of breath.
How can I stop the spread of the coronavirus?
Wash your hands regularly with soap and water, and cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze.
If you develop symptoms similar to the coronavirus, you should seek medical attention. Stay home from work or school and avoid contact with others. It can take up to 14 days after coming into contact with the virus to develop symptoms.
COVID-19 is a new condition and there’s much about the disease we still don’t understand. For now, taking precautions is the best way to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
This story was originally published April 2, 2020 at 2:59 PM.
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